Microsoft Research Community

Greeting,

 Hi I would like to introduce myself and as asked tell you a little about me and why I am here.

Frst off I would like to say thanks to all the people who have been working on getting the WWT up and runing for us all. 

 I started doing astronomy back when I was very young and am now 60 years old. Live in San Francisco, CA and joined up with the SFAA back in 1974. Rejoined the club in 1986 and wasVice President in 1986-87 and became President in 1988. After that I was on the board for many years after that. Started up what we call the City Star Party here in San Francisco to show the stars to the public in the city.

In 1996 I johned Delphi Internet Services Inc. and  created a forum called Galaxies Astronomy Club it was the 21st forum on Delphi.

This was before the WWW and the Internet was using what us old timers call the Text Side of the Internet to communicate.

The forum was all text based with no pictorial representations at all, if you wonted an image you had to download it.

As I was into astronomy and had helped run the SFAA  for many years already I was very interested in finding a way to bring guest speakers in to my forum to give talks. What Delphi had was a new type of way of letting its members post messages back and forth to each other in what was know as a conference area in each forum owners page. So, I saw that this could also be used to bring in people from outside Delphi to have these

conferences, So I called up the CEO of Delphi by phone and asked him if I could have a guest come into my forum to give a talk with out joining up with Delphi. He agreed and I was able to get a password and user name for my guest with out a charge for 30 days.

My very first guest was John Dobson and he came to my house to do the conference. It was very successful and it when on with guest such as David Levy, John Spencer, Halton C. Arp, David Dunham and many others.

Over these years I have been the host of many groups to do with astronomy and have been keeping my own astronomical archive for many years now with over 50,000 images from all the great  observatory's that are in space and on the ground.

This week I have open up a  users group for the WWT on Facebooks called

WorldWide Telescope Users Group

here:

 http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13895306732

This new group has been set up to help the public and the  amateur astronomer share and help each other make the best use of the WWT in a more lade back and personal one on one atmosphere. I am not computer expert or clam to be a top astronomer, but I do bring with me the true love of astronomy and hope to do what ever I can to make the WWT and astronomy part of our ever day life. Its all about sharing! 

Regards,

 Toney

Is this going to be the actual forum for WWT or the one of Facebook? 

No, it is not the official WorldWide Telescopes Users Group, they have them here at this web site.

The one I set up on Facebook is only one of the many that is sure to come about at other Internet venues.

I am one of the first amature astronomers that perhaps sees the  poetntial of what the WWT can do for astronomy by way of the Internet and am only trying to help its growth by helping user make the most of it.

 As more people start using the WWT they will be looking for users groups where they can come and chat and share their own experiences and that is why I started up this forum, to give people a place to come and share all of this. 

The group is not for bata testers or people with technical problems, rather for sharing their own work and for the public to learn about what others have  create, such as WWT guided tours and information on where to look to make their own Guided Tours, with news of what has been added to the WWT and so on.

 I hope you will join the user group and come and share with us your own stories, it should be fun and worthwhile!

Regards,

Toney

 WorldWide Telescope Users Group

It looks like it's just you and I on this forum.....where's everybody? Surely we are not the only once who have installed WWTelescope?!?....

...I've just noticed the other thread, the WWTelescope thread....going there too. I'll see you around the forum.

 Cheers!

I do not know where everyone is, but your right this place should be alive with people.

If you do not find much going on here then come on over to my WWT Users Group on facebook.

At least we can start working on getting  to work on your club and my group going.

I never wait for people as there is so much to do anyway...

BTW: What club are you with and where is it at?

I used to be with the San Francisco SFAA but now am oing it alone for the most part.

Will be telling them about the WWT at the next indoor meeting and would hope to have some more to tell them about by then

I now have 23 members over on my facebooks forum and hope to get the membership up to over 100 by next month.

Here is the URL Link again:

 http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13895306732

Regards,

Toney